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Daimler launches new corporate structure

STUTTGART, Germany, Nov. 4, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Daimler Group comprising parent company and three operating subsidiaries Increased customer focus and agility with Mercedes-Benz AG, Daimler Truck AG and Daimler Mobility AG Daimler AG continues to be the only listed company Ola Källenius, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz AG: “Our… Continue reading Daimler launches new corporate structure

Tesla Autopilot Sees A Person In All Black Crossing At Night (Video)

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Published on November 3rd, 2019 |

by Johnna Crider

Tesla Autopilot Sees A Person In All Black Crossing At Night (Video)

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November 3rd, 2019 by Johnna Crider

Autopilot sees something different in the moving shadows, something that the naked eye of a human barely catches in the early hours of the morning or late at night. It is dark and rainy, conditions that can create low visibility. What may actually be a person jaywalking could be seen as a moving shadow by the naked eye of a sluggish driver.

This time, even though it wasn’t actively engaged, both the driver, Green, and Autopilot saw the jaywalker, who was wearing dark clothing and no reflective gear. He just seemingly appears from the clutches of the shadows like a haunted humanoid shape that one would see in a ghost-chasing documentary.

The guy also crouches in front of the car instead of moving away fast as a normal person would do. What normal person would be out at 4:00 am dancing in the streets while it’s raining? One never truly understands the mind of another person, so your guess is as good as mine. Fortunately, for this crouching shadow, the car was a Tesla and the eyes that saw him were both the driver’s and Autopilot’s. Also, note that Autopilot was not actively engaged, even though its cameras were clearly seeing everything and the emergency response mechanisms kicked in.

You may remember “Green The Only” from a YouTube video showing Paris streets from the perspective of Tesla’s Autopilot. Here’s his latest video:

In this Twitter post, Green posed a very important question: Why do people just walk around like this at 4:00 in the morning? They wear all black and just walk out in front of you with seemingly no regard for their own lives. When I lived in Atlanta, this was a very common occurrence. The nightlife was active there (probably still is) and there is also a visible homeless problem. I would be out at 4:00 am because sometimes I had to work at that time. One of the restaurants I worked at closed at 3:00 am on the weekends, so I would often see the late-night zombie-like waltzes.

Quite a few of the late-night walkers were homeless men and women who, with nowhere to go, would often prowl the streets at night. They would walk in the streets as if they were actual cars. I am sure that Atlanta isn’t the only city with this issue.

For the sake of such lives, and the lives of the drivers, the fact that Autopilot can see what a tired driver at night cannot is indeed a good thing. In another tweet, Green explained that he rarely engages Autopilot in these driving conditions, but would have if he had known these guys would have been there, just to test it out. Another user, Bfklin, asked, “Is that just visual sensor or is there coordination w radar?” Green replied that it was both vision and radar fusion. Green also provides another view with the narrow cam:

This particular view shows you just how Autopilot sees things — it’s not the typical camera footage that many see online. When cameras are referenced, it’s usually related to Sentry Mode, not Autopilot. As to how Green got this type of view from the Autopilot camera? He explains this in a Tesla Motors Club forum.

Editor’s addendum: Just before editing this article, I came across a great clip of Tesla Autopilot actually saving the day. Have a watch:

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About the Author

Johnna Crider Johnna Crider is a Baton Rouge artist, gem and mineral collector, and Tesla shareholder who believes in Elon Musk and Tesla. Elon Musk advised her in 2018 to “Believe in Good.”

Tesla is one of many good things to believe in. You can find Johnna on Twitter

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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Says Company May Purchase Technology From Tesla

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Published on November 1st, 2019 |

by Steve Hanley

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Says Company May Purchase Technology From Tesla

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November 1st, 2019 by Steve Hanley

Just yesterday, CleanTechnica contributor Maarten Vinkhuyzen told us about Fiat Chrysler’s plan to merge with PSA Group, parent company of Peugeot and Citroen, a move he called “a huge gamble.” His story got a lot of comments, many of which suggest the merger is like strapping two sinking oil tankers together in hopes the combination will somehow stay afloat.

It should be noted the prior proposed merger of FCA with Renault was torpedoed by the French government, which owns a large number of Renault shares and was less than pleased by the lack of guarantees that French manufacturing jobs would not be adversely affected by the merger. The government of France also has a big stake in PSA and will seek similar assurances. This merger is a long way from being a done deal.

Photo courtesy Peugeot

Chrysler has been in financial trouble since 1979, when only a federal loan guarantee program allowed it to stay out of bankruptcy. Since then, iconic American brands such as Plymouth, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, and Mercury have disappeared from the scene but Chrysler has soldiered on, thanks in no small part to the profits derived from the Jeep division, which it acquired from AMC in 1987.

Mercedes-Benz bought the company in 1998 for $34 billion. After several years of struggling to make it profitable, Mercedes dumped the company on Cerberus Capital Management Group, a private equity firm, for $7.4 billion in 2007. Beginning in 2009, Fiat began acquiring pieces of the company out of bankruptcy, finalizing its acquisition in 2014. The new company became known as Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, or FCA, and was headed by Sergio Marchionne until his death in 2018. His successor is Mike Manley.

Michael Manley, CEO Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Photo courtesy FCA

On a conference call with stock analysts last week, Manley announced that FCA would consider buying a skateboard or rolling chassis from Tesla to serve as the basis for electric cars from the FCA/PSA alliance. Manley hinted that the new company could adapt the Tesla skateboard to individual markets by using suspension, braking, and other systems already on the shelf for brands such as Maserati, Alfa Romeo, or Jeep that are part of FCA today. He did not say whether Tesla has expressed any interest in selling such skateboards to other companies.

“The customer will be agnostic” to certain components like batteries and drivetrains, Manley said, according to Business Insider. What he means is that drivers focus more on the emblem on the hood and how comfy the seats are rather than the components that make a car go. He may be correct. Few people ever see the battery pack in an electric car or the motors that turn the wheels. They could come from Mars for all most people care as long as they function properly.

Many manufacturers today worry about becoming merely assemblers of parts acquired from outside suppliers. Gone are the days when a Jaguar was defined by that great thumping twin cam engine designed by William Lyons under the bonnet. Customers care no more about who supplies the motors in their electric cars today than drivers of conventional cars care about who manufactured the gas tank.

Tesla does have some history of working with other manufacturers. It provided batteries and motors to Mercedes-Benz for its first electric car, the B-Class Electric. And did the same for Toyota’s RAV4 EV. But those cooperative agreements ended years ago, and if Elon Musk is interested in becoming a supplier to other manufacturers today, he certainly hasn’t shown any signs of that publicly.

The most likely scenario is that Manley is whistling past the graveyard of automotive legends that have ceased to exist. He might be better off looking to Volkswagen, which is actively seeking buyers for its MEB electric car platform.

“Our relationship with Tesla goes back a long way,” Manley said. “It really has helped us. But FCA are absolutely committed to reducing CO2 emissions around the world.” This from a company that once begged customers not to buy its electric cars. Manley promises that after the merger with PSA the new company will pursue electrification on a “grand scale.”

“We’ll see,” said the Zen master.

Related: Tesla & Fiat Dance An Interesting Tango
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About the Author

Steve Hanley Steve writes about the interface between technology and sustainability from his home in Rhode Island and anywhere else the Singularity may lead him. His motto is, “Life is not measured by how many breaths we take but by the number of moments that take our breath away!” You can follow him on Google + and on Twitter.

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